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As I write this, I am preparing to experience my first World Cup while living in Rio de Janeiro.

As an American, I have always known the World Cup existed. Every four years, there would be highlights on television, conversations about the U.S. team, and news stories about the world’s largest sporting event. But if I am being honest, it never felt like a cultural event in the United States the way the Super Bowl does.

For Americans, it is more like the Olympics. We are happy when the United States qualifies, and simply getting there feels like an accomplishment. We are rarely considered a serious contender to win it all.

Brazil is different.

Brazil is expected to be there. It is expected to compete. It is expected to win. After all, it is the only country to have appeared in every World Cup tournament ever held.

No pressure.

Living in Brazil has changed my perspective.

The longer I live here, the more I realize that the World Cup is not simply a soccer tournament. For many Brazilians, it is history, identity, pride, heartbreak, celebration, and national memory wrapped into one event. To understand Brazil, you eventually have to understand what the World Cup means to Brazilians.

The sport is part of who they are.

I was sitting on the beach recently when my sister-in-law stopped by, and we started talking about Brazil’s warm-up match against Panama. Brazil won 6–2, and naturally, everyone was watching.

Then she said something that stuck with me.

“I hope we win. The young people haven’t experienced this yet.”

You could feel how much it meant to her. She has been around for all of them.

She has lived through Brazil’s championships. Her father traveled to the United States in 1994 to watch Brazil win the World Cup. My wife talks all the time about going to matches at Maracanã with her dad when she was growing up.

That is when it clicked for me.

For many Brazilians, soccer is not just a sport. It is a lifestyle. It is family history. It is culture. It is a shared experience passed from one generation to the next.

A Brief History of the World Cup

The FIFA World Cup began in 1930 when the first tournament was held in Uruguay. Only thirteen teams participated, and the host nation won the championship.

What started as a relatively small tournament grew into the most-watched sporting event on the planet. Today, billions of people follow the competition. Entire countries seem to pause as their national teams compete.

As an American, I used to think of the Super Bowl as the pinnacle of sports. Living abroad has taught me that much of the world views the World Cup in much the same way, only on a much larger scale. Instead of one country watching two teams compete, the World Cup brings together entire nations.

Brazil and Futebol

It is impossible to talk about the World Cup without talking about Brazil.

Brazil is the only nation to have qualified for every World Cup tournament since the competition began. More importantly, Brazil has won the tournament five times, more than any other country.

Soccer, or futebol as it is known here, is woven into Brazilian culture. You see it everywhere. Children play in parks, on beaches, and in neighborhood streets. Professional club rivalries are fierce, but during the World Cup, those loyalties often take a back seat as the country rallies behind the national team.

Before moving here, I knew a few famous names, most notably Pelé. After living in Brazil, I have learned that players like Pelé, Garrincha, Zico, and Ronaldo are more than athletes. They are part of the country’s cultural story.

Many countries have sports heroes. Brazil has soccer legends.

Very few athletes transcend their sport and become global cultural figures. Muhammad Ali was one. Pelé was another. I knew who Pelé was when I was eight years old, long before I knew much about soccer and certainly before I knew much about Brazil.

There have also been several recent documentaries and Netflix series about Brazil’s teams and players. Watching them helped me understand that these athletes are not remembered simply because they won games. They became symbols of entire eras in Brazilian history.

The Wound That Never Fully Healed

One of the most fascinating parts of Brazilian soccer history is a story that happened more than seventy years ago. This is the moment that set the stage for a dynasty.

In 1950, Brazil hosted the World Cup. The country was confident. The tournament’s decisive final match would be played in Rio de Janeiro at the newly built Maracanã Stadium, one of the largest stadiums ever constructed.

Brazil entered the match against Uruguay needing only a draw to become world champions.

Instead, Uruguay won 2–1.

The defeat became known as the Maracanazo, loosely translated as “the blow at the Maracanã.”

It is difficult for many Americans to appreciate the emotional impact of that loss. Imagine your country hosting the biggest sporting event in the world, expecting victory, filling a stadium with nearly 200,000 supporters, and then watching the dream disappear in front of your eyes.

For many Brazilians, the memory became part of the national consciousness. It was more than a lost soccer match. It was a collective heartbreak.

Even today, people still talk about the Maracanazo.

This is the event that helped shape the story told in the recent Netflix series about Brazil’s legendary 1970 team, often considered one of the greatest teams ever assembled.

What made the story even more interesting for me was learning that my wife’s parents were there.

According to my wife, both were at the stadium that day, among the nearly 200,000 spectators. When the final whistle blew, she says there was silence.

Not anger.

Not chaos.

Silence.

The Netflix series references this same reaction, which makes the story feel even more real to me. This was not just a soccer match. It was a national heartbreak witnessed by an entire generation.

And perhaps that heartbreak became part of what fueled the greatness that followed.

A little pain helped create a giant.

Redemption Arrives

What makes the story remarkable is what happened next.

Brazil did not allow the 1950 loss to define its future.

In 1958, Brazil won its first World Cup championship. A young Pelé announced himself to the world and helped lead the team to victory.

Brazil won again in 1962.

Then came 1970.

The 1970 squad is frequently described as one of the greatest soccer teams ever assembled. Led by Pelé and featuring a collection of extraordinary talent, Brazil won the tournament in spectacular fashion.

For many Brazilians, the victory represented more than another championship. It helped complete a journey from heartbreak to redemption.

If 1950 was the wound, 1970 was part of the healing process.

Brazil would go on to add championships in 1994 and 2002, cementing its place as the most successful nation in World Cup history.

More Than a Game

One thing I have learned while living in Brazil is that soccer often serves as a shared language.

You can discuss politics, economics, or social issues and quickly discover disagreements. Mention the national team, however, and suddenly everyone has an opinion.

During major tournaments, the country seems to transform.

Friends have told me stories about businesses closing during important matches. Streets become quiet as people gather around televisions. Fireworks erupt after goals. Entire neighborhoods decorate buildings in yellow and green.

As I prepare for my first World Cup living in Rio, I am curious to see how much of that I will experience firsthand.

Part of me suspects the stories are exaggerated.

Another part of me suspects they are not exaggerated at all.

Knowing what I know now, I suspect the second answer is closer to the truth.

Understanding Brazil Through the World Cup

Before moving to Brazil, I thought the World Cup was simply a soccer tournament.

Living here has shown me that it is much more than that.

The World Cup is connected to some of Brazil’s greatest moments of pride and some of its deepest sporting disappointments. It tells stories of triumph, resilience, and national identity. It explains why names like Pelé still carry such significance and why matches played decades ago remain part of public memory.

Perhaps that is why the World Cup continues to matter so much.

It is not just about who wins.

It is about remembering where the country has been, celebrating what it has achieved, and hoping for what comes next.

As an American expat, I am still learning. But one thing has become clear: if you want to understand Brazil, you eventually have to understand what futebol means to the people who call this country home.

And in a few short months, I will get to experience it for myself.

FIFA World Cup Winners by Year

Year Champion

1930 Uruguay

1934 Italy

1938 Italy

1950 Uruguay

1954 West Germany

1958 Brazil

1962 Brazil

1966 England

1970 Brazil

1974 West Germany

1978 Argentina

1982 Italy

1986 Argentina

1990 West Germany

1994 Brazil

1998 France

2002 Brazil

2006 Italy

2010 Spain

2014 Germany

2018 France

2022 Argentina

2026 ???

World Cup Titles by Country

1. Brazil – 5
2. Germany – 4
3. Italy – 4
4. Argentina – 3
5. France – 2
6. Uruguay – 2
7. England – 1
8. Spain – 1

If you would like to take part in the poll for the tournament, the link is here

2026 FIFA World Cup

Thanks for reading and let me know your thoughts on the game, tournament and who you think will win.